The Broker Known Importer Program (BKIP) establishes a process for licensed, permitted U.S. customs brokers to identify importers in connection with their import related activities. The National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America, Inc. (NCBFAA) has developed a CBP-approved review list that the customs broker can use to identify eligible clients. The review enables the customs broker to verify the importer’s identity and confirm the importer’s understanding of its compliance obligations in areas such as entry declarations, ADD/CVD, IPR, valuation, and preference programs. The review also address documentation and information requirements for customs clearance, record keeping and drawback.

What NCBFAA hopes to accomplish:

CBP wants to use relationship between brokers and their importer customers to assist with the CBP mission. The NCBFAA has developed this BKIP Program to provide a way for CBP to benefit from this relationship. The thought behind this program is that there are a limited number of importers who will avail themselves of the Importer Self-Assessment (ISA) and Trusted Trader Programs. That being said, the customs brokerage community can become a force multiplier for CBP. The customs brokers can leverage their relationships with the importing community to identify those importers who are reputable but may or may not qualify for or otherwise elect to participate in the ISA or Trusted Trader programs.

This voluntary program, both for brokers and importers, is targeted for the client who is a regular importer into the United States. The program an opportunity to identify and address compliance issues with the importer prior to entry, alerts CBP to the fact that the broker has performed a review and provides the importer with some benefit for having engaged in the process. The participating broker can use the CBP-approved template to conduct the review with an importer. The broker alerts CBP to the fact that this activity had occurred through an electronic flagging at the time of entry. CBP may offer benefits to the importer that might impact the importer’s risk profile in CBP’s targeting system. Additional benefits may also be extended to importers under this program.

The benefits extended to an importer under this program are unique to a specific importer-broker relationship; that is, each broker has to independently review the importer and the broker may not rely upon a review performed by another broker. Brokers have to periodically re-confirm the importer’s compliance and, upon request, have to demonstrate to CBP that the review was conducted according to established guidelines. This review isconsidered “customs business” as it is an activity that relates to the preparation of documents/data that is transmitted to CBP in furtherance of the clearance process.